Once
by Greenwolves
Summary: Zachary finds Karigan roaming the halls at night, and follows her. Oneshot KZ. No spoilers :)
1. chapter 1

**Hi guys. I obviously don't own GR because if I did there are would be loads more KZ lol. Enjoy.**

Zachary stalked down the empty corridors of his castle, deep in thought. Moonlight caught on the tips of his amber hair when he passed the windows, and brought the stark planes of his angular jaw into sharp relief. His shadow, Fastion, prowled silently behind him, while his own footsteps echoed in the empty quiet.

Fastion suddenly perked up, and as Zachary made to turn a corner, herded him the other way. "This way Sire."

"I- what? Why?"

And then Zachary heard it. Quiet footsteps. But they were in this corridor. If there were an intruder, Fastion should have tried to get him to safety.

"No intruder Majesty. I know who it is. My sister walks like a stealthy hunting cat. Quiet, but not silent. Each foot placed just so..."

Zachary shook his head. What? Fastion's sister?

Fastion rolled his eyes, and dragged him into the shadows.

When a person entered the hall further along, and started walking towards them, he understood what Fastion had meant. His _sister-at-arms_. Rider Sir Karigan G'ladheon.

The woman he loved.

He grinned when he saw her outfit. A white nightgown that made his face heat, with riding boots that came almost to her knee, and a sabre. Her long, brown hair was loose down her back, and he ached to run his hands through it.

But she seemed to be having a whispered conversation with nobody, gesturing and waving the sabre about, looking to the side as if there was somebody there. Despite the late hour, she was walking purposefully forwards, towards the corridor that lead to his private chambers. She passed by the two men watching from the shadows, oblivious.

He blushed at the thought of why she would need to go there at such a time, and tried to hide it from Fastion, who just rolled his eyes, and began to follow.

The two men crept silently along the corridor, and Karigan suddenly stopped. They thought they'd been caught, but Karigan simply turned to the 'person' she had been talking to, and said, "Lil, I get it! Now, you should go before the Gods catch you down here again." She paused, and then nodded. "Goodbye Lil." She then carried on walking.

So, she had been talking to the ghost of Lilieth Ambriodhe, hero of the Long War, founder of the Green Riders, and somehow, Karigan's friend.

Zachary shrugged and continued on.

She didn't get all the way to his door, however, but turned left down a small passageway that had been obscured by a tapestry.

Zachary had never noticed it, and judging by how wide Fastion's eyes had gone, neither had he.

They quickly followed.

Karigan continued down the tunnel, which was extremely dusty but otherwise in perfect condition. She then got to the end. There was a small peephole in the end wall, which she looked through, and then pushed the wall forwards. It swung open silently, like a door. Zachary caught a glimpse of a dark room with a welcoming fireplace, and a dark blue four-poster bed...

Hang on! That was his room!

As the door closed behind her, Zachary rushed forwards to peer through the hole. Karigan had ignored the bed completely, resolutely not looking at it, and instead hid behind a cupboard.

After a few seconds Zachary got bored and allowed Fastion to have a look. Zachary wanted to go in and talk to his Rider, but Fastion said they should remain here.

Zachary was the one watching when a man in black crept through the normal door to his room. He quickly approached the bed, and lifted a long sword, prepared to strike at the bed. Before he could, Karigan jumped out and killed the man.

Breathing heavily, she still refused to look at the bed, where, he suddenly realized, he would have been laying, and started to drag the man's body towards the door she had come through.

Fastion, deciding he had been here long enough, said he was going to go back as guard the entrance to the passage. He disappeared down before Zachary could make any objections.

Zachary looked back to see Karigan trying to haul the man up into the small corridor. He bent down and lifted the man under his arms, and then dumped him to the side.

Looking back, he found Karigan staring up at him with wide eyes, and mouth slightly open. She glanced over at the empty bed, who's non-existent occupant she had just saved, and then back at him. "I- uh..." And then she blushed and let her loose hair fall over her face.

Meanwhile, Zachary was trying to force himself to not kiss her. The revealing nightgown, her long, brown hair, and her blush, made it very hard to stay focused. In the end, he gave up.

He lifted her chin, and hungrily took her lips in his. She stood stock still, bewildered for a second, not sure if this was right. She then surrendered, and, dropping her sabre to the floor, her hands came up over his back, to dig into the hard muscle of his shoulders.

He moaned into her mouth, and hugged her closer to him. This was better than he had ever imagined.

One hand slid down her side to her waist, and he began to kiss her along her jaw, then down her neck. She tilted her head slightly for better access, and he could hear her breathy moans. He closed his eyes tightly and buried his head into her neck, gripping her waist tighter.

He knew he shouldn't, but he needed her. So he picked her up and carried her into his room.

She giggled against his chest as he kicked the passage door shut behind him, and then laid her gently on his bed.

Her bright eyes looked up at him with love, and her brown hair was splayed across the pillow. His gaze became more heated as it travelled further down. He smiled and took off her riding boots, then climbed on top of her, slowly hiking her nightgown up further.

Her hands reached for his amber hair, and he crawled up, legs trapping her underneath him.

They began to kiss once more.

He knew that they shouldn't be doing this. But he needed it. He needed to have one night in his life with the woman he loved.

And he knew that he wouldn't regret a single moment of it. **Hope you liked it! Please review :)**


	2. Twice

**Thanks for the reviews! Got bored so decided to write another chapter lol. KZ yay :P**

Zachary woke suddenly.

He looked around warily. Nothing seemed to have woken him, nothing was out of place. He waited a few more tense seconds, warily watching the almost-darkness, penetrated only by the small fire in the hearth, before relaxing back into his four-poster bed.

He used to only be able to sleep on his front, but that night with Kari he had slept on his back, her head resting on his chest. Now he could only sleep in that position.

He lay there, watching the flickering flames in a daze, recalling the night they had spent together.

He remembered the passion that had been shown, that both had somehow hidden from each other before then. He felt her lips all over his body, and he knew now what her skin tasted like.

He growled in frustration.

To be in love with a woman whom you are unable to marry, but know what it could be like if you were... It was unbearable.

He knew he needed this woman in his life. Her fire, passion, kindness, bravery and love. He needed her, and she him. She could offer this country so much if only she were allowed to.

But a commoner could never be Queen.

A patch of shadow moved. He froze. Friend or foe? Assassin or saviour?

A man appeared out of the darkness. He wore the blue uniform of the regular militia, but Zachary could make out a clear black tree tattoo on the man's hand. Second Empire.

The man came towards the bed, lifting a dagger as he came. When he stood by Zachary's side, the dagger rose above the man's head, ready to strike down and kill the king.

Then the man's eyes widened, and he looked down. A sword point stuck out the man's gut, and after it was taken out of his back, the man collapsed to the floor.

Zachary saw a quick glimpse of a figure in a white dress behind the man before closing his eyes and pretending to be asleep.

A light step brought the figure to his bed side. He thought he might know who it was, and when they begun smoothing out some of his amber hair, he knew for certain.

Karigan.

She sighed quietly, and made to leave, but Zachary reached out and grabbed her wrist. She gasped, but made no move to attempt to get away.

"Zachary? You're awake?"

Without opening his eyes, he pulled on her arm, forcing her to collapse across him.

"Zachary?" she whispered, and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her under the covers. She was warm against him. He grinned, and unfortunately she noticed.

"Zachary Hillander, you let me go right now or I swear..."

He stopped her by pressing his lips to hers. For some reason, she seemed unable to resist, and twined her own arms around his neck. He rolled her underneath him, and her body lay between his knees as he rested his weight on his elbows.

When they parted for breath, she whispered, "we shouldn't be doing this."

Zachary completely ignored her, and begun kissing down her neck. She continued talking, while angling her head slightly.

"You are King, and I am just a commoner..."

His lips sucked at the joint of neck and shoulder, and she emitted a breathy gasp before continuing.

"This cannot go anywhere, I can never be Queen..."

His tongue wandered along her collarbone, and he nudged the strap of her nightdress aside with the corner of his jaw.

"We should stop this..."

Zachary licked from her bare shoulder, up Karigan's neck. Her wide eyes caused him to grin, and he dragged the shoulder strap down her arm more, kissing the exposed skin as he found it. Every part of this wonderful woman should be adored as she deserved.

She watched as he did so, no more objections, and her eyes fluttered shut.

When his lips finally found hers once more, her fingers dug into his shoulders, and she rolled so that she was on top.

She sat on him, straddling his hips, and growled.

Zachary was so suprised that he lay there immobile, just watching, as she stretched out like a cat on top of him, her fingers walking his muscled chest.

She slowly undid the buttons of his shirt, and looked back up at him, unsure.

And in that look, he knew for certain that his heart could never belong to another.

He was completely, utterly and hopelessly in love with Karigan G'ladheon.

 **Hope you like it. Just a quick thing I wrote instead of working haha :)**


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